most badminton players are sucko !!!

Re: Californian's comment about leaving mid game

While I can understand advanced players who would rather wait to play with others of their own level, there's no excuse for leaving mid-game, or being rude when you tell others you'd rather wait for another game.

There is one other point I was thinking about while reading recent responses to this thread, and that is being understanding when someone says they would rather wait for another game. Saying "I'd rather wait for the next game" is often secret code for "I want to play with someone closer to my level". People say this to avoid hurting anyone's feelings, and sometimes I feel so guilty because the players who asked me to play will stand there looking at me like I'm a real a__hole, or like I just killed their dog.

Let's not get so emotional about these things. As I said in my original message, it's just common sense that people play with others who are at about the same level. Everyone has more fun that way.

 

Respect is very important on the court. If someone just uses others to get past time, but dump them as a piece of sh*t when better chance comes up, I can only see how rude he could be.

Think about if everyone else treat him like this, how he will think about the fact? Surely won't feel good. I believe take an extra 2 min or so to quickly finish the current game and a warm "thnx", it's not such a big deal for advanced players.

 

God, I would have smashed a shuttle at that guy. At least have the decency to finish the game. If that happened in our club, that player would have been out the door on his a**. Maybe, I would choose to play a game with them and leave mid-game too.

The whole idea is to play a match evenly so that everyone really enjoys the game. I have seen folks (from my club) who would rather win (at all costs) and so would choose their partners so that they are the stronger team. To me, that's even better as it would give me greater satisfaction when we beat the them.

Sometimes, you can't even up the teams no matter what (e.g. 3 advanced + 1 beginner). In which case, you can take it easy on the weaker team or you can choose to end the game quickly.

 

Everything a person displays during a game of badminton, be it arrogance or sportsmanship, it comes from the person. Badminton is just the medium through which you express yourself. If you're arrogant in normal life, its bound to be reflected in your badminton game.

Ive never gotten coaching on techniques or footwork. At the same time, Im not useless with a badminton racquet. Ive been in the situation where Im the weakest person on the court and people around me actively vent their frustrations with me, Ive been there with people who are better than me but take the time to show me what Im doing wrong. Ive seen other weaker players in both situations. From my side of things, I always try to do "the right thing (TM)". I never say no to a game of badminton simply because I love the game and I want to play as much as I can.

I understand ppls frustrations when playing against "unchallening" opponents, but for me, as long as they are putting in some effort or enjoying the game, then its worth it. I used to be in a club where I would play against people who had been playing for around 8 years and their game had not changed much at all. Apart from a few players who worked to improve their games, the rest simply played very "casual" badminton. Im not saying thats wrong, badminton is a great source of fun and its good that there are people out there playing, but when you mix people like that with people who are serious about improving their game, then the result gets messy.

They are two groups of people with different aims, they would not gain anything from playing against each other. One group is looking for fun and no hard work, while the other is willing to put in hard work (while still having fun).
On a similar note, for club nights and things like that, there should be some organisation of players into skill level. People who want to improve should play people just above their skill level. The challenge would be more to both players and they should look to progress to harder opponents as their skill improve.

I do have a lot more to say, however Im relatively new to posting on BadmintonForum. Ive been a member here for some time now, but have never had any relevant information or experience to pass on. As I mentioned earlier, I have no real foundation in badminton, its just something I picked up on my own and developed on my own. I was fortunate to have some supportive people where ever I played. This was a rare topic where I actually felt like I could say something, so I poked my head out of my shell and put my neck out for the chop

 

We had a dickhead for a fourth player.

There had been this player who had been nagging us to play in our doubles group. He finally had an opportunity one afternoon. It happened to coincide with my partner and I on the injured list. Our normal third is quite strong as well, so my partner and I got trashed.

We played a couple days later, but still on the injured list, so once again was taken down. By this time I overheard this fourth person started making comments about us and our group.

The next time we played together, he asked couple friends to watch him play, likely to impress them. Well, the punchline is that by this time my partner and I are fully recovered. We proceeded to beat the snot out of him. Actually what we did was make him look clumsy on the court since he couldn't read our shots, or handle the speed.

We all made plan for another day. Guess who leaves us high and dry looking for new fourth. On top of that, he didn't even have the courtesy to call us or arrange a substitute.

 

The other people who knew him better than I did didn't seem surprised or bothered by his action. He was a frequent and well-known player at the gym and maybe that's why he felt he could do that. It's still rude, though, IMO.

The worst attitude for a better player to have is "you should be grateful I came down to your level for whatever time I chose to give you."

I experienced one other weird incident. I partnered up with a good player for a tournament--he was only playing this doubles event. We lost in the first round. He felt he was too good for the consolation bracket, so he just went home.

 

i totally agree with silentlight, though the last post in this thread is more than 2 years ago... i still think that arrogant players still exist (of course).

yes, it is definitely better for a weaker player to play and train with a better player. but just like what they said about our local soccer, that good players will have their ability lowered if they played with weaker players for too long. therefore, my point is, where on earth are we going to find good (and accomdating) players if everyone is afraid that their skill level may drop if they play with weaker players for too long?
and so, how are the weaker players like me going to improve?

and with regards to expensive equipment owned by weaker players. i see no issue with this. it's other people's business to buy whatever they fancy. it makes no point to say that all racquets are the same and therefore no need to buy fanciful and expensive racquets.
come to think of it: the person may just wish to try out different brands.
the person may had tried lower-end and mid-range racquets before too.
the person is able (or feels) to tell the difference between the various racquets.
and just like what silentlight said, a player's attitude and personality is more important than the game and racquets owned.
a good racquet (read: pro racquet) may serve to boost the confidence of the player and not necessarily for showing off or boosting one's pride.
what i believe is, don't devoid people of the chance to own expensive racquets. afterall, in fact, most players are just recreational players, yet u see the sales of the good racquets sky-rocketed. this shows that everyone does have the need or desire or want to own a better racquet, irrespective of your level.
and of course! a pro racquet had much higher resale value than a mid-range one! (look at mp99 and mp22)

another point that i wish to point out, and this serves to deflat the ego of some better players over here...
and that is, what good does it serve you by making poor players like me running around like a steam train? do you find it amusing, enjoyable, and ego-boosting to see the poor lad panting and perspiring like mad?

as a lousy player myself, i had encountered several types of recreational players before...
i) those who think that they're good (they're good, no doubt) but they take pleasure in making you run around, rather than giving some pointers. they are usually some uncles who have decades of experience in the game when compared to a youngster.
ii) some players who are good but showed frustration when a weaker player is about to enter the court.
iii) some good players that got so irritated with their partner that they keep giving pointers during the match, which can be quite distracting.
iv) and of course, i have met several nice people who are way better than me but yet remained humble and polite and willing to teach you better strokes and techniques.

i hope i'm not stirring up a hornet nest.

 

What's your ideal scenario, then? There are different classes of good players, some that go all out, and some that do not. In fact there's been some threads discussing what to do when encountering players with large gaps in skill. And it's pretty much divided.

-dave

 

here i am not talking about how to deal with the scenario... and your scenario took me by surprise...
i'm just talking about egoistic players. that's all.

 

I've had my share of experience against egoistical players as well, sad to say. Totally demoralizing, but an eye-opener for me, when the games becomes faster, placement of shots more accurate, etc etc ...

-dave

 

It is very difficult...

...and depends on the players themselves. I, myself, would be relunctant to give pointers without being asked as that would be tcstay's 3rd group of egoistical players...

As for the first and second groups, look at it from another perspective. Court times are limited and you want to get the game over and done with but I still wouldn't want to shellack the poor buggers 15-0 (actually it would depend on how much stress I have to work off that evening)

I think that in any club, you are bound to find all four groups and I think it all boils down to your own attitude and manners. If you yourself is easygoing and approachable with a passion for the game, then more than likely, you will find folks who would be more eager to discuss pointers and share experiences.

Just have fun and watch some of the better players for pointers.

 

Well I have to say the baddie players in my school are polarized.

There's this one guy (who is at and advanced level) who plays with everyone and makes adjustments accordingly to try his best not to hurt/embarass you. He even gives basic coaching when there is some spare time.

Now there's another guy (also at an advanced level) who refuses to play with weaker players (like me), but at least he doesn't insult them.

And there's this really annoying guy who insults weak players when given the chance. In fact once when I was playing on the court, he stepped in and pretended I was non-existant. When I made my protest, he told me 'You have no say here.' The sad thing is he isn't that great of a player himself, sure he has powerful smashes, but that's all. If you drop or play net shots, he always loses. I try my best to ignore this guy and others (including the two mentioned above) tell me the same thing.

 

i totally agree with you, Mr Anderson.
i will only be convinced with the arrogance if the player is some ex-national, or constituency player...

and actually, Winex, it doesn't matter to me whether i'm at the wrong end of 15-0, as long as the opponent kills off each shuttle with a decisive shot when the opportunity comes (i would be really impressed), rather than making me run around like a monkey.

 

I play at a YMCA, where it's all about community spirit... and I love it here. I'm a relative beginner on my way to intermediate, I think, although this judgement depends largely on whatever scale you're workingo n... and yet, there's some people there who just don't get it.

There was this lady once, we'll call her H. I came in with 3 friends, "C", "L" and "A".

Usually, at the YMCA that I go to (in chinatown montreal) during the mornings, people are pretty nice about court time... since courts are open more or less all day for badminton except when there are areorbics classes, there's usually more than enough space for everyone-- and to top it off, you seldom have to reserve, because if you show up out of the blue, people invite you to join them.

This one day, I was playing with my three friends in a game of doubles, and H shows up. "I've got the court reserved in 15 minutes", she points out. Okay, that's fine with me, no problem with any of my friends either. So she sits down on the bench to watch us play. My friends and I were the only group there that morning, there are two other empty courts that no one is using, but H's partner hadn't shown up yet. ONe of my friends says he's tired and has had his fill for the day, so my friend L, a beginner, she goes to H and offers to let her join our group while waiting. L comes back to the court, i didn't hear what they said, but after that the game pretty much went downhill, it was as if she'd lost all energy or something, even though I was playing my two remaining friends one on two.

Now, it turns out, as L recounted to me later, that H told her that she didn't feel like paying with people below her level. that's probably an understatement: to paraphrase, not only that, but we weren't even qualified for the warmup, apparently.

L was so discouraged (she was just a beginner, and this was only her 3rd time coming to the YMCA!) that she hasn't come back to play badminton with us since, and that's been a great loss for the sport. Now, I suppose you could say that it was L's partial responsability not to put up with that kind of crap and just not let it affect her, but what can I say, she's a sensitive person in that respect and the words of a regular player meant a lot to her.

(for the record, at the time, I wasn't that great. Technique was, and still is, my weakest link, coupled with horrid footwork. Nonetheless, I played her at singles a few days later, and I beat her with such ugly self-named techniquse as the "Sailor moon smash", a stupid name that my friend made up for the way I tended to "twirl" while doing an overhead backhand. Beleive it or not, I beat her pretty bad.)

Anyway, my point, as has already been pointed out, is that there are good ways and bad ways to decline playing with relative beginners. It's okay, and it's understandable to feel less inclined to play with relative beginners. But there's somethign to be said about "delivery", especially considering that some beginners might take a regular's words more to heart than others.

It's okay to decline, but i think phrasing it in such a way that it turns a beginner away from the sport entirely, well, if that's what badminton spirit is then who the hell wants to play? But i guess that's how the human mind works, we remember the bad things as strongly as the best-- and when you,re a beginner, things are a lot tougher.

Although it depends a lot on how you take the insult as well.

In contrast, my other friend, A, who was at the time was also a beginner, took the insult the other way and started playing badminton regularly, and has dramatically improoved since then.

I myself of course prefer to play people my level, but I won't hesitate to play beginners, if only to recontribute to that group there that took me on so readily when I didn't know anyone there.

In a worst case scenario, I won't get invited to join a game of advanced players-- and I won't ask to join either, because I know they'll be too nice to decline. But in general, it's not something I take personally.

What I find most ironic about H is that the people she plays with are those who I consider my betters at the YMCA... and they're all nice people. So I'm wondering if she's aware of the fact that THEY are going out of THEIR way to play with a player lower than their level, why can't she reciprocate this kind of kindness and patience to others for the better of the community?

I mean, in our scenario those many years ago, it wasn,t even that we were taking up her court, it wasn't as if there were any better people to play at the time. She just flat out thought that we weren't worth it, period.

 

see Jinryu, how selfish H is as a badminton player.
she herself can enjoy the sport by inventing what 'sailor-moon stroke' and yet she didn't wish to play with people 'below her level'.
what happened? she thinks too highly of herself.

i realise that some get more arrogant as the time goes by when they accumulate more experience and better technique that they forget that they were once beginners in the sport too.

 

Heh, actually, the sailor moon smash was my move, not H's. I was just trying to emphasize that even using stupid moves I could beat her, and that she really wasn't even as good as she thought... but the arrogance, somehow, to her, was still justified.

But that was a pretty long time ago, I haven't had any similar problems recently. Although, like i say, it's too bad that L never came back to play.

 

It depends on the situation and different players attitude.

Many times, I saw weaker players (including myself, when I against the better opponents), would rather running around, and being "tortured". To us, it's a meaning lesson, if we willing to think afterward, and willing to run and analyze the mistakes. Then after game, we can try to analyze the strategy, and get the motivationand try to analyze the strategy and push for proper footwork training.

Personally, I will get more frustrated to see advanced players using thunderous smashes or way advanced tricky shot against beginners. To me, it's might just because they want to take the court time in 5 min rather than 20, but no real usage for the opponents. I would rather running around, to see how could a simple underhand lift (if used correctly) can make us running out of breath easily. At least, if I am willing to think, I might be able to mix it up with my limited strokes and experience, and get my strokes to be more effective.

It's hard for beginner to swallow the sour defeat, but it's also hard for the better players to always act like a "nice big brother/sister" to please the fellowers.

 

Oh, for the ‘better’ players want to make playing more exciting when playing a ‘not as skillful’ player?

Ah....., how about try to keep each rally as long as you can. That means hitting nice returns and let he/she smashes at you left and right from the mid-court. In stead of making him/her run like a monkey, let him/her hit shots that make you run like, you know, H*ll. Return the shuttle as nice as you can so that he/she can torture you a little and keep the play alive at the same time.

For the no so skillful players, don’t feel boring if the ‘better’ player offers you with the idea of drill but not, you know game. Doing drill can be just as ‘fun’, but harder.

Badminton is such a fun sport. It is up to you to make it fun. Playing a bad attitude person, it doesn’t matter it is baddy or pin-pong, skillful or lousy, you are not going to enjoy it after all.

 

After applying such a practise, how often has it happened to you that the person(s) you're playing with/against think they are as good or better than you? And then start developing an arrogant "sucko" attitude? It's happened to me more times than I care to remember.